Is the world ready for Belgian ska-punk?
Probably not, but like it or not, that's just what you get with this album.
The promise of "party-time vibes and up tempo song structures" initially made my heart sink but for sheer exuberance the band deserve an unblinkered hearing.
Overweight are a five school friends from Vilvoorde, Belgium who began life playing punk covers. Perhaps realising that trumpet and trombone were not ideal instruments for three-chord garage rock they began to embrace ska beats. The result is a manic hybrid sound where punk just about nudges out the ska elements.
The philosophy of the group is summed up in the song I Cannot Manage It Today. Mom is trying to get them to get the groceries in, mow the lawn and clean their rooms but they fob her off by telling her they've got better things to do with their time : "I like playing music in a band and drinking beer with my friends".
Freed from these chores, the world is their oyster and on Ship Of Anarchy they imagine themselves as suburban pirates, minus the raping and pillaging: "we're not that stereotype but we do like drinking and a good fight".
This may not amount to anarchy in the EU but it demonstrates the extent of their loathing for anything that smacks of routine. Tonight Is Mine gives other examples like traffic jams and standing in line while Come Out Now takes a proactive line advocating the radical gesture of turning off your TV and/or computer screen.
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Girls are another good reason to get out more although judging by the tracks Not A Good Day and Rollercoaster, the band and the beer are safer bets.
To show they also have a social conscience, Don't Be An Idealist is a protest song of sorts and Eric tells of the miserable life of a homeless man.
All ten tracks are sung in fairly basic English with a few gaffes along the way. I confess to being puzzled by lines in Eric, where the man sleeping rough asks himself "Who am I? Society? A peanut? A fucking flee?"
Gert Thielemans sings a bit like Green Day's Billie Joe Armstrong with flat, unvarying vocals and the rowdy, hyperactive blast of energy gets a little repetitive on disc but I'm sure in a small club a good time would be had by all.
Overweight on Myspace
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